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ACT ESOL Language, Resistance, Theatre training workshops are the result of a three-year research process undertaken by Participatory ESOL practitioners and Participatory Theatre practitioners, exploring how to implement Theatre of the Oppressed in the ESOL classroom.

About

Throughout the day we will be inviting participants to try out the different theatre techniques, games and exercises that appear in the ACT ESOL Language, Resistance, Theatre resource and get hands-on experience in how participatory theatre can be used with ESOL students to develop language. There will also be discussions and reflections on the ethics of this work alongside how these processes can politicise the classroom space.

The collectively developed methodologies shared in the training workshops and resource are part of a radical ESOL education that is interested in transformation.

The training will be led by members of the ACT ESOL research group and is for ESOL practitioners and/or those working in migrant justice contexts. To attend the training, you will need to have read through the ACT ESOL Language, Resistance, Theatre resource, which is available to order here or download as a PDF, then apply by following the instructions below:

Training places are free but limited. To apply for a place please respond to the following two questions and send your answers to actesol@serpentinegalleries.org by 6 May 2019. Workshop participants will be informed of allocated places by 10 May 2019.

1. Why would you like to attend this training?

2. Have you attended Theatre of the Oppressed training before, as either part of ACT ESOL or other contexts? If yes, have you used any of the approaches or methods in your classroom or community spaces before? Please give a brief description.

English for Action believes in the power of education for social change. They deliver English language courses (ESOL) with partner organisations in areas where there is a clear need. Their classes are spaces where students can not only learn English but also, using community organising methods, can connect with other people in their communities, share experiences, discuss important social issues, develop new skills and take action to effect change in their own lives, in their communities or even further afield. They are leading practitioners of ‘participatory ESOL’, an innovative and liberatory approach to adult education that builds students’ critical capabilities, builds on existing strengths and engages with and seeks to change the world, inside and outside the classroom. They use participatory methods in their teaching and through their training and research, encourage others to join in.

Implicated Theatre has been working since October 2011 in a series of workshops and performances that began at the Serpentine Galleries’ Edgware Road Project. Instigated by artists from no.w.here and working with theatre director Frances Rifkin, the experimental workshops explore the relationships between political speech and action, the self and the collective, voice and silence. Now in its eighth year of working and performing, Implicated Theatre has been forming close relationships with migrant’s rights groups and unions. The organisation creates theatrical interventions inspired by real-life struggles and highlighting issues of social justice and have worked in collaboration with the Migrants Resource Centre and migrant’s rights organisations such as the Anti-Raids network, Latin American Workers Association, Justice for Domestic Workers, English for Action and with UNITE’s Hotel Workers Union and the United Migrant Workers Education Project (UMWEP)

The training will share the experiences and learning from this process, as well as explain the work to ESOL practitioners to implement in their own contexts.